Increases in the amount of data handled by computer systems have led to demands for data storage backup devices that use magnetic tape. Magnetic tape media remains an economical medium for storing large amounts of data. For example, magnetic tape cartridges, or large spools of magnetic tape, are often used to back up large amounts of data for large computing centers. Magnetic tape cartridges also find application in the backup of data stored on smaller computers such as workstations, desktop, or laptop computers. In addition, magnetic tape media can be used for other types of data storage, e.g., unrelated to data backup.
Automated cartridge libraries provide access to vast amounts of electronic data by managing magnetic data tape cartridges. Automated cartridge libraries exist in all sizes, ranging from small library systems that provide access to twenty or fewer data cartridges, to larger library systems that provide access to thousands of data cartridges.
One type of data storage system includes a linear tape drive. Linear tape-open (LTO) data cartridges are representative of linear tape products. Conventional LTO cartridges include a cartridge memory (CM) chip that may be, for example, a radio-frequency identification (RFID) chip. The CM chip may be affixed to or within a housing of the tape cartridges. LTO drives typically include an RFID interface that enables the drive to read and/or write data to the CM chip of an LTO cartridge. LTO drives include a radio frequency interface to read and write data to the CM chip over radio frequency signals. Other types of linear tape cartridges with similar radio frequency chips include IBM 3592 data cartridges and Sun T10000 data cartridges. Future tape cartridges will likely use CM chips as well.